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October 2, 2009
 Dear Flying Partners,
Well, I finally had a moment to listen to the
latest "Right from Richard" message that I keep hearing about
from many of you. I
must agree with Mr. Anderson on at least one score - AFA
representatives do occasionally work in the "dark of night" and
tonight is clearly no exception for me. Despite the antagonistic
tone of his message, as your collective bargaining
representatives we will continue to defend our contract while we
work hard to build a professional relationship with Delta
executives. After
all, we hope to soon work alongside Delta flight attendants to
negotiate a new joint collective bargaining agreement with these
same executives.
Working together, we will strengthen Our Airline and Our
Future, just as we have done for over 60 years at
Northwest.
With that being said, I share your dismay over
management's blatant lack of respect and regard for the simple
fact that this is OUR choice and not theirs. I want to assure you
these attempts to interfere and insert anti-union bias in every
nook and cranny of our work lives will not go unreported to the
National Mediation Board and to our elected representatives in
Washington DC. This
week alone I filed 19 separate reports, along with nearly a half
of a foot of supporting documentation. Those reports were sent to our legal
department and will be added to the reports already filed by
other flight attendants. In the meantime, we recommend you
visit www.deltaafa.org and click on Our Legal Rights if you need to file an Interference Report, or for a Dear Supervisor letter that can be used if you
are harassed by a specific manager regarding the vote.
Please don't hesitate to contact any AFA representative
for assistance.
Clearly, the gloves have come off in management's
union busting campaign.
The amount of time and resources that Delta executives
have already poured into their anti-AFA campaign is mindboggling
- all while our airline is bleeding cash and our Pacific routes
are being used as collateral to raise funds for various
ventures. Again, we
must ask ourselves why executives are willing to spend millions
of dollars in this environment on union busting, if our contract
is truly worse than Delta's ever changing policies. Do not be discouraged,
this strategy comes as no surprise to many of us and
in particular to Delta flight attendants. After all, Delta has
followed the same dog-eared anti-union playbook for a great many
years.
As you know, the Transportation
Trades Department filed a petition with the National Mediation
Board - with the simple aim of aligning NMB voting rules
with the more democratic method that is already used in union
elections held under the NLRB and in most other democratic
elections worldwide.
Richard and Joanne state that the current NMB voting
method has been in place for 75 years, but that doesn't make it
right or fair, especially when an employer busily pads the
"eligible" list with names of deceased
and unreachable "employees". Of course the current voting method stacks
the deck against those who seek collective bargaining and Delta
and its supporting cast of a few anti-worker Senators knows
it. The TTD
petition for the rule change seeks only a typical democratic
ballot - nothing more and nothing less than to honor each
worker's vote, no matter if it's a yes or no.
As worker's rights activist Mother Jones once said,
"Injustice boils in men's hearts as does steel in
its cauldron, ready to pour forth, white hot, in the fullness of
time".
Well, Air and Rail workers have decided now is the time
to stand together, to right a wrong that has simply been endured
by workers in our industries for a great many years. We are proud to be Delta
flight attendants, as well as part of the AFL-CIO and the TTD;
however we feel compelled to remind our executives with all due
respect, that the actions of the leaders of millions of Air and
Rail workers represented by the TTD do not simply revolve around
the goings on at Delta Air Lines.
As the company ramps up their anti-union campaign,
we ask you to take time to prepare yourself. Remember that the
management's efforts aren't personal; they are attempting
to save the company money by blocking our right to a
contract. Our role
is simple, we continue to do a great job on the airplanes to
ensure our company’s success, but we must also set aside
some time for our efforts to ensure we keep the
right to a legal contract for all flight attendants of the new
Delta. To that end
we are making great progress and support for a legal contract
and union representation is growing ever stronger. We believe that whether
the NMB entertains the voting rule change proposed by the TTD or
not, that our group is ready to vote and that the majority will
choose a contract and union representation for all new Delta
flight attendants.
Whether working in the "dark of night" or the light
of day, we are Pro-Delta and Pro-AFA. Thank you for your hard work, for supporting
each other, and remember to wear your AFA pin, display your AFA
bag tags, print and carry information for your colleagues, and
when its time - don't forget to VOTE for our right to a
legal contract www.deltaafa.org.
In unity for a better future,
Janette Rook
NWA MEC President
Association of Flight
Attendants-CWA
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